Mauritius battles to contain oil spill amid warnings damaged ship could break up

An oil tanker that ran aground off the coast of Mauritius could break up, the country's Prime Minister has said - deepening the island's environmental catastrophe.

More than 1,000 tonnes of oil has already spilled from the MV Wakashio, polluting the sea off the south-east coast of the Indian Ocean island, as well as its beaches, lagoons and coral reefs.

And the disaster could still get worse, Mauritius' leader said on Sunday night.

With 2,500 tonnes of oil still in the vessel, which first ran aground on July 25 but only began to leak about a week ago, there are fears the boat could break in half.

Pravind Jugnauth told reporters: “The cracks have grown. The situation is even worse. The risk of the boat breaking in half still exists.”

Thousands of local volunteers have been trying to keep the oil from the beaches, while salvage teams from Japan and France have worked to stem the flow of oil from the tanker.

Mitsui OSK lines, which operates but does not own MV Wakashio, said it was "terribly sorry" for the incident and would make "all-out efforts to resolve the case".

But some have said that with so much damage already done, it is already too late.

Former Mauritius MP and environmental consultant Sunil Dowarkasing said: "This is no longer a threat to our environment, it is a full-blown ecological disaster that has affected one of the most environmentally important parts of Mauritius, the Mahebourg Lagoon.

“The people of Mauritius, thousands and thousands, have come out to try to prevent as much damage as possible."

Happy Khambule, a senior campaign manager at Greenpeace Africa, added: “Thousands of species around the pristine lagoons of Blue Bay, Pointe d’Esny and Mahebourg are at risk of drowning in a sea of pollution, with dire consequences for Mauritius’ economy, food security and health."

Others have asked why the government did not step in immediately when the boat ran aground.

“That’s the big question,” Jean Hugues Gardenne, of the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation, told The Associated Press.

“Why that ship has been sitting for long on that coral reef and nothing being done.”

Read more

Russia declares state of emergency after 20,000 ton Siberian oil spill

Oil spill from ship threatens World Heritage site in Pacific

Politics combines with painting at exhibition all about oil spills

Flights halted at Gatwick airport due to oil spill on runway

BP pays 'record' $18.7 billion fine to settle Gulf oil spill claims